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Kia · NHTSA safety record

2017 Kia Sedona

Every safety complaint, recall and defect investigation the US government holds on this vehicle.

Owners have filed 134 safety complaints about the 2017 Kia Sedona with the US government. Of those, 2 describe a crash, 3 mention a fire, 11 people were injured and no death is recorded. 4 recall campaigns are open against it.

The most complained-about system is the engine, named in 60 complaints, 45% of the total. The typical failure was reported at 40,000 miles, the median across the 35 complaints that gave an odometer reading.

Compiled from NHTSA's complaint, recall and investigation files · Covers November 2016 to September 2026 · How this is counted

What is on file

134 complaints on file

134

Complaints

2

Describe a crash

3

Mention fire

11

People injured

0

Deaths

A complaint is an unverified account by the person who filed it, not a finding of fault. One complaint is one ODI number, which is how NHTSA counts them.

A recall is the manufacturer conceding a defect, and the repair is free. Whether one covers your particular car is a question only its VIN can answer, because a campaign covers a production range rather than a model year.

Which system owners named

Complaints naming each system
ENGINE 60 · 45%
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 27 · 20%
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 23 · 17%
STRUCTURE 15 · 11%
AIR BAGS 13 · 10%
EXTERIOR LIGHTING 11 · 8%
POWER TRAIN 4 · 3%
SERVICE BRAKES 4 · 3%
VISIBILITY/WIPER 4 · 3%
LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES 3 · 2%
STEERING 3 · 2%
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING 2 · 1%
0 27 54

Red marks a system with a recall campaign against it. One complaint can name several systems, so these add up to more than 134.

When the complaints arrived

By the year NHTSA received them

By the year NHTSA received them, which is not the year the failures happened. They peaked in 2024 at 30.

32 24 16 8
16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26

This is the year the complaint was filed, not the year the failure happened. The range runs from 2016 to 2026, the last of them a part year, which is why its column is drawn faint.

Crash test ratings

NHTSA New Car Assessment Program

NHTSA crashes a car into a barrier and a pole and measures what happens to the dummies inside. This is what it awarded the 2017 Kia SEDONA, and it is a separate question from what owners report going wrong later.

Test VAN FWD
Overall
Frontal crash
Frontal, driver
Frontal, passenger
Side crash
Side barrier
Side pole
Rollover
Chance of rollover 13.0%
Stability control standard Forward collision warning standard Lane departure warning standard

A dash means NHTSA did not rate that test for this vehicle.

Recall campaigns

4 on file

AIR BAGS

22V031000 · January 25, 2022

The defect
Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2017-2019 Sedona, Soul, Soul EV, 2017-2018 Forte, and 2017 Forte Koup vehicles. The Air Bag Control Unit (ACU) cover may contact a memory chip on the printed circuit board and damage the electrical circuit. Circuit damage may result in deactivated air bags that will not deploy in a crash.
The risk
Air bags that do not deploy as intended can increase the risk of injury in a crash.
The remedy
Dealers will inspect the ACU, and either update the software or replace the unit, as necessary. Repairs will be performed free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed March 21, 2022. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC226.

Kia Motors America · up to 410,619 vehicles across all model years covered

EXTERIOR LIGHTING:TURN SIGNAL

21V725000 · September 17, 2021

The defect
Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2015-2017 Sedona vehicles. The Smart Junction Box (SJB) software logic may not properly interpret the signals received from the multifunction switch, which could cause the turn signal to activate in the opposite direction of what the driver intended.
The risk
A turn signal activating in the opposite direction of what was intended by the driver increases the risk of a crash.
The remedy
Dealers will update the SJB software, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed November 12, 2021. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC217.

Kia Motors America · up to 88,576 vehicles across all model years covered

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:WIRING

19V109000 · February 19, 2019

The defect
Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2015-2018 Sedona vehicles equipped with manually-adjusted front passenger seats. Over time, the Occupant Detection System (ODS) wiring harness located underneath the front passenger seat may break from the seat being occupied.
The risk
If a child is in a child seat in the front seat, a broken ODS wiring harness will not prevent the front passenger air bag from deploying in the event of a crash, increasing the risk of injury to the child.
The remedy
Kia will notify owners, and dealers will remove the wire harness clip to prevent the wiring harness from breaking. If the harness is found damaged, the front passenger seat cushion will be replaced. These repairs will be performed free of charge. The recall began March 19, 2019. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC175.

Kia Motors America · up to 94,389 vehicles across all model years covered

STRUCTURE:BODY:DOOR

18V338000 · May 23, 2018

The defect
Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2015-2018 Kia Sedona vehicles equipped with a power sliding door (PSD). The PSD may not auto-reverse when its closing is obstructed.
The risk
If the door closes on an occupant, there is an increased risk of an injury.
The remedy
Kia will notify owners, and dealers will reprogram the PSD module software, free of charge. The recall began on June 18, 2018. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC164.

Kia Motors America · up to 106,428 vehicles across all model years covered

In owners’ own words

Quoted from the complaint file

Quoted from NHTSA's complaint file. These are unverified accounts by the people who filed them, not findings of fault.

ENGINE

4 injured · fire

While driving on the highway, the engine stopped working; smoke, metal fragments and oil came out of the front of the car leading to zero visibility. We were extremely lucky that we were able to quickly navigate out of traffic, stop the car on the side of the highway and get all kids out safely. The police and fire department came immediately to help. We had the vehicle towed and examined. The car had an internal engine break down. The connecting rod and the engine block were torn off and the oil pan was heavily damaged. It is deformed to the outside. The vehicle needs a new engine.

NHTSA complaint 11556486. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

AIR BAGS

1 injured · crash · towed · 19,000 miles

WHILE DRIVING AROUND A CORNER DOING 25 MPH, ON A BACK ROAD THAT WAS DRY, I CORRECTED THE STEERING TO THE LEFT OUT OF THE CURVE AND THE STEERING CONTINUED TO PULL TO THE RIGHT AND WOULD NOT CORRECT. VEHICLE WENT DOWN A 20 FOOT EMBANKMENT AND STRUCK A TREE HEAD ON. THE AIRBAGS DID NOT DEPLOY IN THE COLLISION AND THE ENGINE DID NOT SHUT OFF. I SUSTAINED SERIOUS INJURIES, RESULTING IN 4 MONTHS OF MISSED WORK AND A DOUBLE DISCECTOMY TO REPAIR TWO SEVERELY HERNIATED DISCS. UNTIL MY SURGERY I WAS IN A WHEELCHAIR FROM THESE INJURIES, AS MY SPINAL CORD WAS COMPRESSED BY THE DISCS IN MY NECK. THE KIA SERVICE DEPARTMENT AND THE CUSTOMER RELATIONS HOTLINE WILL NOT SPEAK TO ME REGARDING THE SAFETY

NHTSA complaint 11197050, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

STRUCTURE:BODY:DOOR

1 injured · 2,000 miles

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2017 KIA SEDONA. WHILE THE VEHICLE WAS PARKED AND THE REAR PASSENGER DOOR WAS SLIDING CLOSED, THE LEFT HAND OF THE CONTACT'S CHILD WAS SMASHED IN THE DOOR. THE LOCAL DEALER (MATT BLATT KIA OF TOMS RIVER, 1070 RTE 37 W, TOMS RIVER, NJ, 08755) WAS CONTACTED AND AN APPOINTMENT WAS SCHEDULED. THE CONTACT'S CHILD SUSTAINED INJURIES TO THE LEFT HAND THAT REQUIRED MEDICAL ATTENTION. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE AND FILED A REPORT. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 2,000.

NHTSA complaint 11025293. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

STRUCTURE:BODY:HATCHBACK/LIFTGATE

1 injured · 13,679 miles

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2017 KIA SEDONA. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE HATCH AND SLIDING DOORS FAILED TO CLOSE. THERE WERE NO WARNING INDICATORS ILLUMINATED. ADDITIONALLY, THE HATCH INADVERTENTLY CLOSED ON THE CONTACT'S BODY. THE CONTACT SUSTAINED HEAD INJURIES THAT REQUIRED MEDICAL ATTENTION. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE LOCAL DEALER (ELK GROVE KIA, 8480 LAGUNA GROVE DR., ELK GROVE, CA 95757, (916) 753-1000), BUT THE FAILURE COULD NOT BE DUPLICATED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED AND PROVIDED CASE NUMBER: [XXX]. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 13,679. *BF INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6). *TT

NHTSA complaint 11118334. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

STRUCTURE:BODY
White paint is peeling off and flaking away, far more than I would expect from normal wear.

NHTSA complaint 11765891. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
The transmission doesnt know what gear it it in. Code p0705

NHTSA complaint 11758955. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

ENGINE
on 8/6/26 my wife was driving home when the Sedona Van began emitting white smoke and started making a whining noise. Little did we know the head bolts had pulled out of the engine causing the head gasket to blow and coolant to leak and total engine failure. Safety risk was engine could have seized in the middle of my wife driving home which could have caused a sudden crash. Vehicle was taken to dealership which confirmed total engine failure due to the well-documented engine failures of the 3.3L V6 Lamda - II engines. Dealership stated my VIN # was NOT included in the extended warranty that the NHTSA mandated KIA provide due to this well-documented problem. I was told the extended warranty

NHTSA complaint 11757573, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

STRUCTURE:BODY
White Pearl paint is flaking/peeling of for no apparent reason.

NHTSA complaint 11743793. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

ENGINE

fire · 146,658 miles

The contact owns a 2017 Kia Sedona. The contact stated that while driving at 55 MPH, the contact the oil light illuminated, and the vehicle decelerated independently. The contact mention he pulled over to the right side of the road, exited the vehicle and when he lifted the hood of the vehicle, he noticed flames coming from the engine. No injuries were sustained. No medical attention. There was no police report filed. The fire department did not show at the scene to extinguish the fire. The vehicle was not destroyed. The vehicle is currently still at the scene. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 146,658.

NHTSA complaint 11736979. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

ENGINE
Same defect on NHTSA (Investigation PE23-019) my vehicle is 1 month outside of the manufacturing date listed, having the same issues, but they will not cover it-even though the same engine is in it. KIA bulletin WTY039 Vehicle is overheating, coolant is bubbling

NHTSA complaint 11731432. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

Compare

Other years of the Kia Sedona

Model year Complaints Recalls Deaths
2020 20 1 —
2019 38 2 —
2018 48 3 —
2016 296 4 2
2015 139 3 —
2014 39 1 —
2012 107 5 —
2011 65 6 —
2010 32 5 —

Other 2017 Kia models

Sorento 804 Sportage 401 Forte 303 Soul 272 Optima 256 Niro 82 Cadenza 32 RIO 31

Complaints on file, same model year.

Every Kia on this site — 181 vehicles.

If this is your car and a dealer keeps failing to fix it, your state's lemon law may require the manufacturer to replace it or buy it back. How many repair attempts it takes, and how long you have to file, is set by the state you bought in and by nothing on this page.

Where these numbers come from

A complaint is one owner's account and has not been verified by NHTSA or by us. A vehicle with more complaints is not necessarily worse: models that sold in larger numbers collect more of them. How this is counted.

Compiled and maintained by
Independent developer and analyst